Edinburgh is one of the couch potato capitals of the UK, according to new research commissioned by gym company Fitness First.

Only Birmingham, Glasgow and Belfast are more unfit than the Scottish capital, and people in Plymouth are slightly healthier than us.

On the flip-side, Norwich was found to be the fittest city in the UK, with people from Norwich most likely class themselves as a fitness fanatic, hitting the gym as many as three times a week on average and going for a run at least twice.

They are also the most likely to walk somewhere rather than jump in the car or take the bus or train, the poll of 2,000 British adults found.

The results in full

TOP 5 FITTEST CITIES

1. Norwich

2. London

3. Leeds

4. Oxford

5. Nottingham

TOP 5 UNFITTEST CITIES

1. Birmingham

2. Glasgow

3. Belfast

4. Edinburgh

5. Plymouth

Overall, 63 per cent of Brits said they find it hard to find the drive to go to the gym, despite the average Brit aiming to shift 13 pounds this summer.

However, in reality the typical adult managed to lose just six pounds on their summer diet.

The biggest excuses respondents gave for failing to get in shape this summer was the weather being far too hot, World Cup matches getting in the way and the fact that Love Island was on every night.

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Other reasons to skip the gym and stay on the sofa were 'I've got an early start', 'Celebrity Big Brother is on' and 'there is no point losing weight as I'm not going away this year'.

According to the data - a whopping 83 per cent of adults wanted to get fitter, but the average adult was found to have at least one take-away each week, five glasses of wine or beer and indulge in fast food twice a week.

46 per cent said they track their steps with a smartphone or trackable device, in order to try and stay more active, but that's clearly not working too well for the inhabitants of Edinburgh.